January 8, 2010:Procter & Gamble is an official partner of the NFL. Rival Unilever is not, and cannot use NFL trademarks, images or the term Super Bowl in marketing efforts. But it can use Chad Ochocinco of the Cincinnati Bengals in a marketing campaign for its Degree men's line of antiperspirants and deodorants tied to what the company must call the "football playoffs."

The online-anchored "Rise to the Challenge" effort contains several elements urging consumers to meet the challenges of life with protection from Degree, "from pushing themselves at the gym to working hard at the office to stepping up for a good cause." The expressive and high-profile Ochocinco will use his favorite means of communication, Twitter, to explain to fans and consumers that "Degree won't let them down when they need it most."

In addition to supporting the Degree products, the campaign has an altruistic component, the Ochocinco Wide Receiver Challenge to help Feed The Children. Ochocinco, whose Bengals lost to the New York Jetsin an AFC division playoff game on Jan. 9, 24-14, will donate $100 to Feed The Children for every yard he gained during the game, in which he had two receptions for 28 yards. Degree Men will also match all donations made to Feed The Children from consumers at www.FeedTheChildren.org/Ochocinco, up to $40,000. Ochocinco and Degree Men will announce the final tally of donations to Feed The Children in Miami on Feb. 4.

As an added incentive, and also to ensure that the campaign has legs even after the Bengals and Ochocinco were eliminated from the playoffs, consumers who make a $5 donation to Feed The Children at select Miami retailers from Jan. 30-Feb. 2 will have a chance to win prizes, including a VIP pass to an Ochocinco party in Miami, where Super Bowl XLIV will be played on Feb. 7.

"Degree Men is proud to partner with a charity and an athlete who rise to the challenge, and we're excited to support Ochocinco with a charity donation based on his performance during the post-season," Jay Mathew, marketing director, Degree Men, said in a statement. "Men can feel ready to rise to the challenge when they use Degree because they know it won't let them down; we're ready to back that up by matching all donations up to $40,000."

According to Ochocinco, who earler this season appeared in a campaign with Terrell Owens for Unilever's Klondike ice cream, "Whether it's making plays on the field or it's helping feed hungry children off the field, I can rise to the challenge in all aspects of life with Degree Men because it won't let me down. . . I want to encourage all my fans to rise to the challenge and make a donation to Feed The Children."